Babysitters On Call

One reason why Harvard bingers suffer relatively few alcohol-related problems may be their unusually strong student support networks, Wechsler says.

Fifty six percent of respondents reported "babysitting" or taking care of a friend who was drunk, while just under half of students nationwide had done so.

"People are really willing to [babysit] here, if someone's unable to take care of themselves," says Maggie J. Morgan '04.

Wechsler says this higher frequency of babysitting may be due in part to the Harvard residential system.

"I think that more Harvard students live in suites than at other schools," he says. "There are more people to take care of people."

And Ware says Houses provide a community and network of support for their residents.

"The House system and the residential system are incredibly important," he says. "The House system has a very positive impact on behavior and social norms--students are around resident tutors and around students of other ages all the time."

Harvard Is As Harvard Does

No one factor leaps out to explain Harvard's drinking patterns, but Wechsler attributes the lower frequency and intensity of binge drinking to the fact that Harvard students behave according to stereotypes.

"The evidence shows that people who are more involved in what I call productive activities--studying, community service, the arts--are less often binge drinkers than people who spend time socializing or watching TV or people who are involved in sports," Wechsler says.

More than half of Harvard students cite academics as an important reason not to drink.

"Oftentimes we're working on Friday and Saturday nights," Petty says. "I know a lot of people taking five or six classes. You just can't have a drinking social life and do that."

"People feel guilty if they miss too many classes or fall too far behind," he adds. "It's all about minimizing stress, and people drink up to the point where stress relieved equals stress caused. It's pure economics."

Extracurricular activities also preclude students from drinking too heavily.

"It's a lot harder to wake up when you're hung over," says Suzannah M. Phillips '03.

Harvard students may actually be less inclined to be frequent bingers from the moment they first enter the Yard.